Amiri skips US-Taliban meetings in Qatar capital

The US special envoy for Afghan women, girls and human rights says she stayed away from meetings with Taliban officials in Doha.

Rina Amiri tweeted on Saturday she was not part of the delegation, led by US Special Representative for Afghanistan Thomas West, which met Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and members of the team he headed.

She opted out of the two-day talks on Wednesday and Thursday after a lot of thinking, Amiri wrote on her Twitter handle.

“I support my colleagues engaging the Taliban,” she said, arguing engagement on issues, such as economic stabilisation and the humanitarian response was necessary to improve the lives of 40 million Afghans.

Amiri insisted: “We must meet with them if there’s any prospect of meaningful action. However, I’m gravely concerned by the Taliban’s actions & current stance on the areas my office oversees …”

She was disappointed to note that global engagement had so far not yielded meaningful outcomes for Afghan women, girls and at-risk populations.

Amiri explained she would engage if te Taliban were ready to work on concrete steps to restore the rights of Afghans, including women and girls.